After Dusk

Chapter Seven

"I saw him dancin' there by the record machine. I knew he must've been about seventeen. The beat was going strong, playin' my favorite song and I could tell it wouldn't be long 'til he was with me, yeah me. And I could tell it wouldn't be long 'til he was with me. Yeah, me singin' I love rock n' roll!" Amora and I belt out the lyrics to Joan Jett's song 'I Love Rock n' Roll' while painting over the graffitied wall in our room.

We fall onto the ground in a fit of giggles. I clutch my sides, trying to stop laughing. We go like this until we're both red in the face and gasping for air. It feels so good to laugh like this. When we both calm down, we continue to lay on the floor staring at our good work which we'd accomplished only after we'd struggled to get the paint can open for a good fifteen minutes. Amora gasps suddenly, interrupting my moment of pride.

"It's almost time for your date!" she exclaims, pointing to the alarm clock that sits on her nightstand.

I look up at the clock in shock. Sure enough, it's nearly four. I look down at my clothes and groan in horror. My jeans and t-shirt are smeared with cream colored paint. My hair isn't much better. After I'd managed to wrangle it into a messy pony tail, I'd successfully splattered it with paint.

"What am I going to do? I can't go on a date looking like this!" I panic, tugging on the hem of my ruined t-shirt.

Amora holds up her hands to calm me, a determined light shining in her eyes. "I got this. Just give me five seconds," she says running over to her side of the closet. She skillfully rummages through her many clothes and tugs out a few articles of clothing. "Here, put these on."

With no hesitation, I grab the clothes and nearly fly into the bathroom. I throw on the shorts, the light striped tank top over the bikini I'd picked out earlier. A quick glance in the mirror tells me that I look decent, you could even call me cute. The light blue accents among the white and grey stripes of the tank top bring out the new blue of my eyes. It's the first time that I actually like the new color of my eyes.

I dash out of the bathroom and Amora instructs me to sit on the edge of her bed. She yanks out my pony tail and runs a brush through it quickly. She leaves it down stating that it brings out the goddess in me. Whatever the hell that means. After a couple exasperated looks from me, however, she finally agrees to let me wear it up in a high, curly ponytail. Curly is the only thing I seem to be able to manage with my hair nowadays. It's constantly curly no matter what I do.

When she's satisfied that I look decent enough for my date, Amora lays back on her bed and strokes Beauty's fur with a proud smile on her face. "There. You look gorgeous."

A knock on the door interrupts my snort. My heart sputters. I gulp as Amora squeals with glee. I wish I could share her excitement. Right now all I seem to be able to come up with is nerves.

"Open the door!" she hisses with a smile on her face.

I smooth my shirt and take a deep breath. With a nervous smile, I open the door and there Theo stands. He's looking as handsome as ever with a pair of jeans and a white t-shirt. That bright smile is on his face once more. Does this guy ever stop smiling? I hope he doesn't. It's too gorgeous for him to stop.

"You look beautiful," he compliments me. I blush and look down, playing with the hem of my shirt.

"Thanks," I whisper, embarrassed. Internally, I frown at myself. Had I been this nervous and shy when I'd first started dating Josh? Of course, Josh wasn't a demigod that looks like an angel and we had been best friends before we started dating, but still.

Oblivious to my inner turmoil, Theo holds out a tanned hand to me, "shall we?"

I beam up at him, determined to get past my nerves, and take his hand. It's warm to the touch, a feeling I seem to be getting accustomed to.